2026 Garindan - Star Wars Retro

At my core, I was a Star Wars kid.  A happenstance find in a Children's Palace in 1978 lead to an obsession that lasted nearly 5 years.  I played with 3 3/4" action figures because of Star Wars.  My obsession with G.I. Joe was a direct result of them supplanting Star Wars as my preferred toy.  This was due to a few factors.  But, the greater accessories, improved articulation and greater variety of vehicles were the driving force to my transition to G.I. Joe.  Despite that, I have a soft spot for vintage Star Wars figures.  Once upon a time, I planned to get a complete set of the original Kenner run.  But, as I got the money to do so, I found that I was far happier using those funds to build out my burgeoning G.I.  Joe collection.  That became my focus.  I ended up selling off my vintage Star Wars figures as I didn't have enough to display and was fine with the 2000's era versions of my childhood favorite characters.  The Star Wars Retro line, though, has scratched that old itch for vintage Kenner type Star Wars figures.  And, I've acquired far more of those releases than I ever figured I would.  My main impetus to get deeper into the Retro figures, though, is that Hasbro started producing Kenner style figures of characters we never got back in the '70 and early '80's.

In this year's set of 6 figures, there was one stand out for me: Garindan.  Ever since I was a kid, I felt that Garindan was a major miss from the Kenner line.  He was more important than Snaggletooth or Hammerhead.  And, his affiliation was known...he was a bad guy.  Not having him as a Kenner figure always seemed like a miss.  

My parents got a VCR very early in the 1980's.  My dad's best friend gave us his as he was more impressed with his new, BETA player.  So, we had a VCR much earlier than most of my peers.  My dad also had a work friend who had HBO when that wasn't something most people even knew about.  My dad spent an uknown, likely LARGE, sum of money to buy a blank VCR tape and gave it to his friend who recorded Star Wars from an HBO broadcast.  So, we had our very own copy of Star Wars that we could watch whenever we wanted.  And, we got more than my dad's money worth out of that tape.  We watched it well over 100 times.  We were still watching it into the early 1990's.  It wasn't until LucasFilm produced an updated trilogy boxed set in 1995 that we finally replaced that worn tape.  (Oddly, the HBO broadcast cut a few seconds of dialog in the Death Star Control Room.  It wasn't until I saw the 1995 tape with it restored that I even knew it existed.  To this day, that scene seems more out of place to me in a Star Wars viewing than any of the Special Editions changes.)  

Seeing the movie so many times lead me to appreciate many of the small characters who had not gotten vintage toys.  I had reveries of a release of Han and Luke in Stormtrooper disguises, Grand Moff Tarkin, Biggs, Sandtroopers, Rebel Fleet Troopers, Cantina Band Members and, yes, Garindan.  When I was young enough to still be playing with Star Wars figures, I wanted them all to fill out my adventures.  When I grew out of Star Wars figures, I still wanted the figures for the memories they'd have created during my younger days.  I just assumed that I'd never get to have most of these characters in plastic form.  But, then, Hasbro brought back Star Wars figures in 1995.  The first two waves were all updated versions of characters that Kenner had also released.  But, as 1996 progressed, Hasbro started to break out a bit.  We saw some new renditions of major characters.  And, Shadows of the Empire brought some great figures that had never been made before to the Star Wars line.  1997 took this even further and released a handful of characters and outfits that had never been released before.  Among these was the first ever release of Garindan.

Something about this Garindan fascinated me.  Mostly, he was the first release of a new character that was on my childhood wish list.  There was something about filling this decade+ old desire that made Garindan more important than he could ever be.  And, when I got the POTFII figure in 1997, he did not disappoint.  Sure, he just stood there with a communicator sculpted into his hand.  But, in 1997, this was light years ahead of Kenner's figures.  It showed all that was possible with Star Wars.  I placed him in a place of prominence on my small, Star Wars shelf.  And, there he stood, representing everything that Hasbro's return to Star Wars could promise.  Over the next couple of years, I picked up a spare Garindan or two.  Toys R Us sold a bunch of overstock figures for $3 or less.  So, it was easy to snag an extra to have around.  I never used him.  But, he would often be among any figures that were on display.  Eventually, though, all my POTFII collection was put away.  And, most of it sold in 2007.  I didn't keep the POTFII Garindan.  

The reason for this, though, was because in 2006, Hasbro had produced an updated Garindan figure.  This release featured substantially upgrade sculpting and articulation.  His proportions were better.  But, the real value was his accessories.  Garindan included a soft goods cape.  The material was light years ahead of the Episode I cloth gear that I had appropriated to my Joes.  It was light but held its shape.  It form fitted to Garindan's head and shoulders.  It gave the figure incredible depth.  Along with that, Garindan came with a new blaster that was more in scale with him.  And, he had a removable communicator that he could hold.  For no reason, Hasbro sculpted a perfect belt holster for him to hold both is pistol and the communicator.  Post Prequels, Hasbro did some great things that drove value.  And, this Garindan figure could never be a character who lived up to the level of detail and care that Hasbro put into his figure.

When I first saw this Retro Garindan, he elicited the same excitement as that first release from 1997.  But, upon looking at him in the early photos, he seemed off.  Mostly, this was just due to the quality of the 2006 figure.  That figure was so perfect that no other rendition could really live up to him.  Upon that realization, I was able to reconcile the Retro Garindan.  And, in hand, he's better than I anticipated.  He's kind of wonky.  But, all Kenner figures were.  He looks like a figure Kenner might have made in 1979.  (Though, his blaster seems out of place and doesn't fit with the aesthetic of figure.  It should have been a Han blaster or Bespin blaster.)  The colors are good, the cape is there.  And, the figure has the required hand communicator that is essential to his character.

I didn't know Garindan's name until the dawn of the internet.  I never called him Long Snoot.  I don't like that moniker for him.  But, had he been released in 1979, Kenner would have called him something like that.  And, you'd have sad, pathetic collectors screaming about how Hasbro's The Vintage Collection release of him that used a name placard of both Long Snoot and Garindan ruined their childhood.  Being anonymous worked for Garindan.  His look was distinctive enough that you could describe him to any fan with ease.  He would have made for a great action figure.  I'm sure Kenner's reasoning for their selection of the 4 Cantina aliens exists out there, somewhere.  But, even as a kid, I questioned why someone like Garindan didn't get a figure while Snaggletooth did.

Next year is the 50th anniversary of the release of Star Wars.  It is every collector's hope that Hasbro commemorates such an occasion with ample toys.  The 40th anniversary (which, I swear was like 18 months ago....) didn't get a ton of fanfare.  But, the 50th appears that it's going to be a bigger deal.  At the 2026 San Diego Comic Con, Hasbro offered a teaser image of how many figures could be released in the Retro line in 2027.  I counted 28 slots with an additional 3 large blobs that could be beasts, playsets, multipacks or even vehicles.  In short, next year is going to be intense for Retro collectors.  With that many possible releases, it has left me daydreaming of a perfect lineup.  Questions, of course, still abound.

Will the 2027 releases be restricted to only Star Wars characters or will we see figures from all the movies?

Will we see remakes of classics or will they be all new figures?

Will they be released as single cards, boxed sets or a combination of both?

These questions and many others will be answered throughout the remainder of the year as we get closer to the actual release dates.  Until then, I've let my mind speculate away as to what I'd like to get.  I'm perfectly fine with updated versions of Luke, Han, Ben, Leia, Vader and Chewie.  With proper sabers, soft goods, useful hands and improved heads, they would be a great capstone for the Retro line.  (Yeah, we got a great Vader in the Kenobi line.  But, he's the least likely character to get excluded from a release.)  Beyond that, there are various Cantina denizens that would be fun to own after 50 years.  A Biggs and even another pilot wouldn't be terrible.  But, really, I'm hard pressed to come up with 27 figures that are left from Star Wars that really need to be made.  Along with Tarkin from a few years ago, we've gotten at least 11 all new figures from the first movie in the last two years.  That filled a lot of holes.  And, the characters left are extremely obscure or rather boring.  

But, if you get some Cantina band members, an updated Jawa, a real Imperial Navy Trooper, Porkins, Motti and the Elvis looking guy who was hanging out at the Cantina, I'll probably get them all.  And, I'm kind of in a place where any Retro figures are that nostalgic nectar that I'll imbibe.  So, I'm looking forward to 2027 and really hoping that the Retro figures continue both their relatively affordable price and their widespread availability.  

In recent years, it dawned on me that Garindan is modeled after a medieval plague doctor.  Before they became a common, clichéd Halloween costume, plague doctors weren't something that most people were aware of.  So, Garindan was a design that was alien, but had enough familiarity that you bought into his plausibility.  It was that grounding design that helped make the aliens so remarkable.  There was thought and purpose behind Garindan's look.  And, it was spent on a guy who had a few seconds of screen time and just two lines...spoken in an alien language.  

Collectability wise, these figures are out there.  Target didn't have the glitches that plagued the 2025 set.  And, these 2026 boxed sets seemed to show up at retail stores in numbers while also not selling out online.  So, there should be ample time to get them.  Last year's set is now available for less than retail.  (You should get another one.  The 2025 set might be the best Retro boxed set Hasbro's ever going to do.)  There's no indication that the 2026 follow up won't follow the same path.  A week after I bought these, Target had them on sale for $10 cheaper.  And, that didn't bother me.  I'm happy with the set and the price I paid.  That's the mark of a good product.

2025 Imperial Armored Commando

It's been over 30 years since Star Wars figures returned to retail in 1995.  Thousands upon thousands of figures have been released in that time.  You have to mine the absolute, obscure depths of the Star Wars universe to find a character who is not immortalized in plastic.  And, one of the reasons why it's tough for fans to rally around a single desired product is because pretty much everything exists.  I might clamor for a "perfect" Boba Fett.  Yet, thousands of other collectors are finely satisfied with one or more of the dozens of Boba Fett figures that already exist.  The only aspect of Star Wars fandom that isn't over represented in toys is the new TV media.  But, even here, the roster is pretty good.

Everything I've ever known about Star Wars collecting generally comes down to a few truisms.  Major characters in their classic looks always sell way better than collectors want them to.  Weird aliens are never the retail hit that collectors think they will be.  And, army builders (especially Clones!) are a guaranteed hit.  But, in recent years, these have eroded a bit.  This Commando has one of the cooler designs we've seen in new Star Wars media.  And, he appeared in the popular Mandalorian universe which is the one property that's really been able to escape the manufactured drama of Star Wars fandom.  Despite that, the figure hit clearance all over the country.  Why?  Well, read on....

We'll just jump right to the meat of this figure.  He was priced at $32 when he was released.  $32!!!  The notion of a "deluxe" figure offering has been around since at least the '90's.  Companies got cute with gimmicks to raise the price of a standard figure by a couple of bucks.  The thing is, those gimmicks at least gave perceived value.  I don't care about a huge backpack with a sound chip in it.  But, there were lots of kids who got a figure that included one and loved it.  The extras justified the increased price.  

Now, look at this figure.  He comes on an oversized card.  This is supposed to give the appearance of value.  But, it's just more trash to recycle.  Supposedly, the selling point is the extra accessory complement.  The figure has a shield, baton, 2 guns and a knife.  That's it.  Truth be told, Vintage Collection Star Wars figures haven't included massive accessory complements.  Usually, it's one or two pieces with each figure.  But, that's offset by the inclusion of attached soft goods or other accoutrements like working holsters, bandoliers and other fun things that couldn't exist at 3 3/4" scale in the 20th century.  This Commando lacks those features aside from the sculpted holster belt.  So, the double price point was for a riot shield and baton.  When put in those terms, you can see why this figure struggled.  There's just nothing there to justify double the retail price of a Vintage Collection figure.  The deluxe figures have, generally, been easy clearance finds in the past few years.  Many have even made it to Ross at really cheap prices.  Yet, Hasbro is hell bent on continuing the concept.  So, they must sell enough to make the clearance worth it.  At some point, they'll break.  Until then, I'll take my clear conscience and cherry pick deluxe figures for 1/2 to 1/3 of retail at clearance.  

Since the Vintage Collection returned a few years ago, it's produced a good amount of amazing figures.  There are figures that I didn't think would ever get made all the way to redos of characters in a look that already has dozens of prior releases.  Somehow, the modern Vintage Collection is both one of the great runs of Star Wars figures and a huge disappointment at the same time.  Much of this, though, stems from the line's history.  I vacillate between two distinct eras as the greatest times to be a Star Wars figure collector.  The first would be the latter half of 1996 through the middle of 1998.  The second was between 2006 and 2009.  

Each of these eras have commonalities.  Both of them produced the best versions of characters that were available at the time.  Both balanced their lineups with: main characters, blink and you miss it minor aliens and droids, offbeat and collector oriented Expanded Universe entities and army builders galore.  Both eras saw massive availability, affordable offerings and a constant stream of new releases.  And, both eras ended with retail malaise setting in.  You can argue that a poor Hasbro decision was the cause of these runs fading away.  But, really, both were about three years long and that's about as long as anything can dominate pop culture without seeing some decline.  

My kids aren't huge Star Wars fans.  They like it.  But, it's more of a background show than anything they really dig into.  But, they are all excited to see the new Mandalorian movie in a couple of weeks.  Sadly, it's not tracking well and it's unlikely to resurrect the Star Wars theatre-going experience.  But, we're going to be there on the first weekend.  It will the first Star Wars movie I've been able to see in a theatre with them.  (They were too young for the others.)  So, it's going to be a great time: regardless of the film's quality.  

Sadly, the days of tracking down toys for them are over.  They've aged out.  I planned to give this figure to my youngest.  But, he said he had no interest.  I've got a bad of cheap Mandalorian universe characters that I've found on clearance in the past year.  And, no one wants them.  So, they're going to go into storage.  And, maybe they'll be something that, in a couple of decades, grandkids find fun.  It's kind of tough to realize that my boys are past their toy years.  It seems like it was just starting up.  Toys, to them, were always playthings.  A fun way to spend time.  But, most of it was spent with each other.  So, the toys were just background to the time they shared as siblings.  That's a vastly different toy experience than mine.  But, that's good.  I was always careful not to push anything too hard to them.  And, they did find their own interests.  It's a lot more fun to see them entering their teen years as fully formed people instead of the stunted mess that I was at their age.

At the end of the day, my Star Wars passion isn't going to die out.  I'll pick up figures here and there.  I'm really enjoying the Retro Collection and hope it finds legs for another hundred figures or so.  And, as cool designs show up, I'll snag one here and there.  I still watch the shows.  Mostly, though, I view the content with my kids.  We enjoy it together.  When they're not around, I'm unlikely to just fire up any movie or show.  Maybe, in a few years, that will change.  I still have my DVD's.  (Heck, I still have my set of original trilogy VHS tapes that were released before the Special Edition!)  So, I can watch it whenever.  Knowing it's there is sometimes the comfort you need, even if you have no plans to actually ever watch it, again.

As for the figure itself, it's cool.  The Commando is a neat design.  He's that bridge between the original trilogy and the sequel trilogy.  20 years ago, this would would have been worth triple his price on the secondary market.  Now, though, he's lost in a sea of Clones and advanced Stormtrooper designs that make him seem another in a large string.  There's nothing that makes him jump out and leapfrog any of the multitudes of cool army builders that have been pouring out of Hasbro since 2002.  If you like the Mando-verse, this guy is a worthwhile pickup if you find him cheap.  He's a good foil to the legions of Mandalorian figures that Hasbro's churned out while also being useful as a backdrop for main characters.  In short, he's fine.

This figure debuted at $32.  Die-hards bought him for that price.  But, generally, the figure hung around.  Around the holidays in 2025, Target started to clearance the figure out.  I found two of them for $12.50 at my  local store.  They dropped to at least $21 on Target's website. (They might have dropped further.  But, I didn't check every day.)  These sold out.  In spring of 2026, Wal Mart began their clearance.  My local store dropped their stock of 8 or so figures down to $16.50.  A week later, they were $11.  I haven't been  back since them to see if they dropped further.  It's just hard to justify much over $12 for a Star Wars figure.  Few figures really hit that sweet spot of nostalgia, absence from my collection and full on quality to get me to spring for one.  At $11, this guy did, though.

2025 Walrus Man (Star Wars Retro)

One thing I always look for from modern toy companies are items that are just good products.  These require a combination of the right price, the right volume and the right innovation.  Often, these toys aren't something I even collect or have any interest in.  But, you can still see the appeal and understand that something is well done, even if it's not for you.  The 3.75" Ghostbusters o-rings are an example.  Maybe not my cup of tea.  But, they are a great product.  The most recent one, though, is the 6 figure Star Wars Retro Pack that is a Target exclusive.  This release is a perfect product.  The figures average out to $10 each.  There are 5 figures in the set that everyone has always wanted in vintage Star Wars format.  And, there are lots of new parts in the set that really add to the vintage aesthetic.  It's the type of thing that really should be a big hit among collectors and casual buyers alike.  

The Star Wars Retro line has been a fun line for me to casually collect.  Originally, it was just straight homages of existing figures with a "new" figure here and there, usually released with an expensive board game.  Then, the line began to tackle characters from Star Wars TV shows and the prequels.  Some of these were great figures.  Others were just forgotten.  The TV show figures, though, proved to be a tough retail sell.  To this day, you can find massive overstock of them at Ollie's stores around the country.  So, Hasbro pivoted away from single carded figures at retail to 6 figure boxed sets that were themed.  This was the purview of the prequel figures and those from the Acolyte.  Eventually, Hasbro got back around to what made the line's name: redos of existing figures.  The Return of the Jedi pack was only available in a box and included 4 classic remakes, a highly desired American release of Yak Face and a brand new Mon Mothma.  The set sold out quickly and tripled in price on the aftermarket.  It's now getting a second production run to fill demand.  

This background lead to the latest Retro product, a 6 figure pack of "Star Wars" figures from the first movie.  The difference, though, is that this set included 5 brand new figures with just a single remake.  It is that remake, though, that drives the focus of this profile.  Walrus Man actually holds quite a few memories for me.  From the original that my Grandmother bought my brother to the anticipation of a real "Ponda Baba" in the mid 1990's, to a super articulated version only sold at Wal Mart in the aftermath of "Rogue One", Walrus Man sparks the nostalgia like few other figures.  

In the spring of 1978, my dad took me to the local Children's Palace.  My youngest brother had just been born and was in the hospital with medical issues.  Relatives came to take care of my younger brother and I.  And, I'd see my parents for maybe a couple of hours per week.  My dad was home on a Saturday, though, and wanted to get me a treat.  We wandered the toy store, looking for something I would enjoy.  Among the multitude of toys, one thing really stood out: a golden robot action figure.  My dad bought it for me and C-3PO became the first Star Wars figure to enter my life.  I hadn't see the Star Wars movie.  But, there was something magical about this toy that just spoke to me.  At some point thereafter, my dad took me to see Star Wars.  And, I was hooked.  On Christmas day of 1978, I had 11 of original 12 figures.  My grandmother decided I needed the final figure: Obi-Wan Kenobi.  We went out shopping on the day after Christmas.  But, we couldn't find a Kenobi anywhere.  Every department store in the mall stocked Star Wars figures that year.  So, we hit several stores with no luck.  My grandmother and mother, though, split from the rest of us to shop for themselves.  At one of the department stores, my grandmother found a single Kenobi, at the back of a peg.  My dad, grandfather and brothers had actually been to that same store and didn't find a Kenobi.  But, that was because my grandmother had just been there and bought the final figure I needed for my early run.

At some point in the first half of 1979, I learned there were new Star Wars figures available.  My mother took me to a small, independent toy store that was near our house.  They had just two, new figures.  They were on a spinning rack on the check out counter.  The figures were the Death Star Droid, given to my younger brother, and Hammerhead, who was the figure I chose.  Hammerhead exploded the Star Wars world even more.  With him, there was a new world of aliens to battle against Han, Luke and Chewie.  They could even fight against Darth Vader and the rest of the bad guys.  On top of that, these new figures introduced bright, new colors to the toys.  Not only were the weird creatures exciting, they used eye-popping colors to drive home their appeal.  

Shortly before the end of my spring pre-school, my friend named Walker brought in a plastic bag full of his Star Wars figures.  Among them were all the newly released aliens.  He also had a Luke in X-Wing pilot gear.  (The timeline is murky, but I remember seeing the Luke X-Wing pilot at the front of a display box that was on sale at a toy store at the Glendale mall.  It might have been before or after Walker brought his loose one to school.)  And, weirdly, a giant, blue Snaggletooth figure that was different from the small, red one I had seen on the cardback of my Hammerhead.  I could not comprehend how cool all these items were.  I never saw Walker again as we went to different schools for kindergarten.  But, I still remember him due to the association with those amazing Star Wars figures.

As we moved into summer, I went to spend a couple of weeks with my grandparents.  Naturally, my grandmother spoiled me rotten.  And, we spent time every day going to various stores where she would fill out my Star Wars collection.  She bought me many figures during this time.  I don't recall which ones, specifically, she bought for me.  But, one day, she did feel that we should get something for my younger brother so he wasn't jealous when I went home with so many new toys.  The figure we chose was Walrus Man.  I don't know why I chose this figure for him.  And, I'm sure I got a new figure that day, too.  I don't remember who it was, though.  But, that Walrus Man called to me.  

The real reason I remember all of this vividly is because of what was next.  I was bugging my grandmother for the figure.  She decided that it would be OK if we just slipped the figure out of the packaging for a little bit and then put him back to give to my brother.  So, she took a butter knife and slit open the bubble so we could remove Walrus Man.  I then got to play with him for a while.  When done, we'd slide him back into his bubble: almost good as new.  This subterfuge implanted the figure into my mind.  When I went home and gave the figure to my brother, my mother was livid.  She was mad that my grandparents had bought me so much stuff.  But, was even madder that the one thing they got for my younger brother had been opened and played with.  My mother and grandmother had a weird and sometimes strained relationship.  Even as a little kid, I recognized this.  Much of it stemmed from the unequal treatment I received in relation to my younger siblings.  Now, my mother does the exact same thing with her grandchildren...favoring some in lieu of others.  

After that, Walrus Man became just another figure in our collection.  In time, we got duplicates.  You'd often find him in the bathtub after someone was playing with him in the water.  But, no other adventures stick out in my mind.  As I outgrew Star Wars figures and focused on G.I. Joe toys, I actually became more of a fan of the Star Wars movie.  One of my dad's friends had taped it off of HBO in the very early '80's.  So, we could watch it whenever we wanted.  I viewed it dozens and maybe even 100 times in the ensuing years.  I memorized the dialogue from the repeat viewings.  And, it became a comfort movie I'd watch whenever I had nothing else to do.  From these showings, I drew a deep appreciation for the characters in the film who never got action figures.  Sandtroopers, Rebel Troops, various cantina aliens and the doomed Rebel pilots all resonated with me and I wondered what it would have been like had those figures been released when I was a kid.

In 1995, Hasbro brought back the Star Wars line.  I was in college.  And, I could justify collecting toys that were really brought back to retail for nostalgic purposes.  The early figures were the same characters that had been part of the vintage line.  But, slowly, Hasbro began to fill out the missing pieces from the original films.  While any Star Wars figures were kind of tough to find until the fall of 1996, I found myself a dedicated collector who spent many summer evenings traipsing through stores in a vain attempt to find a newly stocked case or a forgotten scalper stash under the shelves.  As 1997 dawned, I spent more time looking up Star Wars information online.  Usually, it was in newsgroups.  But, you could find smatterings of info here and there.  Through this, I learned there was a new Walrus Man figure coming that year.  He was now under his "correct" name of Ponda Baba.  And, in addition to his single carded figure, he'd also be in a boxed set with the first Dr. Evazan figure ever released.

I don't know why the idea of a new Walrus Man appealed to me, so.  But, he did.  And, once I heard he was out, I scoured stores until I found one.  The loose figure stood in a prominent place on my desk for over a year.  The Cantina Showdown set with Dr. Evazan, though, proved harder to find.  I found it at a local Wal Mart in 1998.  With it in hand, though, I finally had the pieces of the pivotal Cantina scene in my collection.  The Evazan, though, wasn't a good figure.  And, while it was awesome to finally own all the missing pieces of my childhood, there was still something missing from the toys as the action poses really limited the figures outside of a single pose.

Ponda Baba made one final appearance in my collection.  While "Rogue One" was an amazing movie, it also lead to some pegwarming figures all over the country.  At the time, super articulated figures were sold in smaller, black boxes than the 6" figures.  They were tough to parse through.  And, many stores would stash them on shelves around the toy aisle since they took up a lot of space and, frankly, weren't selling all that well.  As I had been re-bitten by the Star Wars bug, I set out to find any original trilogy figures I could track down.  In 2017, Wal Mart got an exclusive wave of figures that included a re-release of a Ponda Baba mold.  But, my local store was knee deep in unsold figures from later films.  Fortunately, I was able to order the figure online and have him shipped to my local store.  I had to go to the back of the store to pick up the box with my figures inside.  Again, though, there was something about this new Ponda Baba figure that spoke to something inside me.  I have always had a soft spot for cantina figures.  And, once again, I thought it useful to pick up new ones when they were available.  I still have this Ponda Baba figure sitting in a case with a select few, other Star Wars figures.  I have given most of my collection to my sons.  But, this newer, more movie accurate Walrus Man remains among my small retained set of figures.

Back to the vintage figure, though, and this retro representation of him.  Why does this figure have flipper feet?  It's a wholly dumb and illogical leap to add these to the character design.  But, it was also an ingenious bit of toy design on Kenner's part.  They made Walrus Man an underwater monster.  Suddenly, you didn't need a stupid, clear plastic octopus from the Fisher Price Adventure People line to fight divers.  You had Walrus Man.  And, he was way cooler than reality based toy.  The flippers gave him that credibility and made him a good toy.  And, in the end, Star Wars figures exploded not just due to the movie's popularity, but from the fact that they were amazing playthings.  The bright colors made them appealing to kids who hadn't even seen the movie.  This made them a ubiquitous part of any childhood experience for kids of the late '70's and early '80's. 

For a hot minute, it looked like this Retro boxed set might end up as very expensive.  The Target website sold out and it seemed that the sparse allotment sent to brick and mortar stores sold out almost immediately.  Prices on the aftermarket more than doubled.  But, then, more stock appeared on the website.  And, after popping in and out of stock for about a week, the set became readily available.  It's been nearly a month, now, and the set is available to ship tomorrow.  So, that's quelled demand.  Long term?  Who knows?  Hasbro has proven that they're willing to do a second production run to meet pent up demand.  So, that bodes well should this set find good aftermarket life.  Personally, I've found that if I open them up, they'll end up a hot collectible.  And, if I keep them carded, they'll be worth less than retail.  With these figures, though, I don't really care.  The retail price was right and I've gotten my full money's worth of enjoyment out of them already.  These figures scratch a collecting itch I've been ignoring for decades.  And, while it's too late to really collect vintage Star Wars in earnest, sets like this allow me to have a few figures that I always wanted when I was a kid.  So, I hope Hasbro continues to pop a couple of these out every year.

2023 Star Wars Retro Biker Scout

It's that time to once again look at a retro Star Wars figure.  Back in 2020, I looked at an Empire Strikes Back figure.  Three years later, it's time to look at a Return of the Jedi figure.  Or, in other words, it took the same amount of time between the original Luke Bespin in 1980 and the original Biker Scout in 1983 as it did to get the two Retro figures.  Honestly, I had no idea it had been that long.  But, there were a couple Mandalorian waves, Obi Wan Kenobi figures and some Amazon exclusive bounty hunters in there.  But, finally, we have the Return of the Jedi figures.  And, for nostalgic reasons, most of the figures in the 6 figure set are interesting to me.  Naturally, the most interesting in the Luke Jedi.  But, I talked about why that was back in 2016.  So, instead, I'm going to look at this Biker Scout as he was my entry figure into the Return of the Jedi world.

In the spring of 1983, the kid around the block from us invited us over.  And, he promptly showed us his new Biker Scout figure.  It was from the new Star Wars movie and was simply overwhelming.  He looked like an amazingly updated Stormtrooper.  He had the black and white trappings of the empire.  But, he was way more detailed than standard troopers.  And, his pistol was a marvel of design.  It was, at the time, the coolest Star Wars gun that I thought Kenner had ever produced.  Our friend informed us that he found the figures at the local Toys R Us.  So, the following Saturday, I convinced my mom to take us to the store.  There we were greeted by the standard wall of Star Wars figures that now had a few Return of the Jedi figures interspersed among the leftover figures from prior movies.  

I quickly grabbed a Biker Scout for my purchase.  And, my younger brother bought an Emperor's Royal Guard.  I have no idea what other figures they had that day.  But, the pickings had to be slim since I'd have bought a Luke with a new lightsaber if they had it in stock.  I can remember the excitement of find the figure I wanted on the shelf.  Even if I don't really recall looking at the cardback to see what other figures could, possibly, be available on the shelves.  Regardless, for our two first figures from Jedi, the Biker Scout and Royal Guard were pretty good choices.  

I got the figure home and wanted to find a use for him.  The Speeder Bike and this figure are now inseparable.  But, in early 1983, we had not yet seen the bikes that this figure would ride.  I just knew that I had to find him a vehicle.  It turns out that I had removed the seats from the original Tie Fighter and Darth Vader's Tie Fighter.  I had done it in a vain search for lost weapons hidden underneath them.  But, I ended up liking the little pods as vehicles.  So, I put the Biker Scout in Darth Vader's seat and found my Tie Fighter Pilot for the Tie Fighter Seat and the two figures combed the grass underneath our swingset in the yard.  I imagined guns on the front.  And, they, eventually, stunned a Fisher Price motorcycle rider.  That figure was orange and was a close enough approximation for an unnamed Rebel.  This became a recurring theme and the motorcycle rider eventually found himself encased in mud and baked on the hot metal slide as punishment for joining the rebels.

The impression left on me from that day still hangs around, 40 years later.  I can't recall any other Biker Scout adventures.  I'm not even sure if he went with me to my grandparents' house that summer.  But, as the Speeder Bikes came out, we ended up with multiple speeders and multiple Biker Scouts.  But, by the time all of that entered our collection, I had discovered swivel arm battle grip and G.I. Joe was forever relegating Star Wars to forgotten status.

When I first returned to collecting in the mid 1990's, I picked up a complete Biker Scout from somewhere.  Back then, no one who wasn't into the toy scene really cared about old Star Wars figures.  And, I'd get little boxes with a few figures and weapons from various people.  One friend even found another Royal Guard in the engineering lab where some prior student had used the figure for scale on a model machine.  The only person I couldn't crack was one of my room mates.  His father actually worked for Kenner, though not on the Star Wars division.  But, every day, his father would spend his lunch change at the Kenner store.  And, my friend had over 100 of each Imperial trooper at least through Empire.  And, he understood the potential value in his collection.  Knowing what we do now, in 2023, I wonder what treasures he had hidden in there.  But, I'll never know.

While looking over this figure, it isn't a great toy for 1983.  The sculpting and proportions are light years ahead of Star Wars figures from 1977.  But, when you compare this figure to the Joe line of 1983, it is night and day.  Joe had added articulation of swivel arm battle grip.  And, the accessory complement for Joe was ratcheted up from the original offerings in 1982.  Sans the hype of the "final" Star Wars movie, it's doubtful these figures would have been enough to pry me away from Joe as my primary play choice.  But, that hype was real.  And, it was powerful.  And, after tiring of my 1982 Joes, I was full into the Return of the Jedi line.  That interest lasted until July of 1983.  By then, the movie had been released and the story told by my figures was over.  Plus, G.I. Joe figures were blowing the Star Wars offerings away.  So, I pivoted back to G.I. Joe and retain the summer of 1983 as my final time playing with Star Wars figures.

The Return of the Jedi wave is somewhat odd as it is being shipped in solid cases.  There's an upside to this as online dealers can load up on popular figures without being saddled with poor sellers.  At retail, though, it's hit and miss.  My local Target store got a full case of Biker Scouts and Luke Jedis.  These will sell out.  If it was a case of Emperors and Landos, though, a single case of each could block any future cases from coming to your local store.  But, let's face it.  Star Wars collectors are an online, pre-order creature.  The people finding them at retail either already have pre-orders that they may either keep or cancel.  Or, they are casual collectors who don't really follow the line, but will buy something neat if they find it at the store.

The Star Wars Retro figures sold pretty well until the Obi Wan series hit.  Those are still sitting on shelves all over the country despite having the best 5 POA Darth Vader ever made.  Hasbro seems to have gotten their production numbers more accurate since the early waves.  Though, they did overproduce the Mandalorian wave and many of its figures can be had for sale or closeout prices at various online retailers.  But, there's plenty of these figures available from various pre-orders and retail stores.  They run $12.  It's possible that we'll see some clearance sales if these as overproduced as the previous waves.  But, we'll see.  It's doubtful these will take off in value, though.  The Empire Boba Fett had a pretty decent after market for a bit.  But, after an Amazon re-release, they can now be had for around original retail price.  But, really, these figures aren't meant to be valuable collectibles.  They are meant to represent valuable memories from childhood.  They do succeed in that.

2007 IG-88

In 1995, the release of the new POTF II figures to retail re-ignited my passion for Star Wars.  As I was still in school, I didn't have a ton of money.  But, every now and then, I'd treat myself to a vintage Star Wars figure or two.  Among the first figs I bought in the summer of 1995 was an IG-88 figure.  While I hadn't really loved the figure as a kid, the character had grown on me over the years.  So, I wanted to acquire a loose version of him.  I found one (along with a vintage Boba Fett) at the Vintage Phoenix store in Bloomington, Indiana.  I dropped way more money than I should have to buy them both (Ebay wasn't a thing, yet.) and set them on my shelf where they would, eventually, be joined by other figures that made their way into my possession.

As Hasbro released more and more new figures in the POTF II line, it seemed just a matter of time until IG-88 joined them.  1996, though, proved to be a frustrating time to collect Star Wars.  The 1995 releases were sold out pretty much everywhere.  The later cases including Boba Fett, Lando and the Luke X-Wing Pilot had not really saturated the market.  The 1st few months of 1996 were a barren wasteland of empty pegs.  Then, suddenly, in the spring, new waves shipped to retail.  These would quickly sell out for a while.  But, slowly, pegwarmers began to appear.  By May, stores were packed to the gills with Luke Dagobah and Han Hoth figures.  They were the only two figures on the shelves.  And, there were TONS of them.  As more figures were announced, it started to seem as if they'd never get to retail.  But, as August turned to September, stores started ordering more figures and new wave after new wave started to appear.

In October of 1996, I went to the local Wal Mart in my college town to get the oil changed in my van before I drove to my cousin's wedding.  While waiting, I wandered over the toy aisle and was greeted by rows and rows of the newly released Shadows of the Empire 2 figure packs.  1/2 of which were the Boba Fett/IG-88 pack.  I quickly bought one, opened him in the van before I left and then kept him under the seat in the back of the van until I returned home on Sunday.  This new IG-88 seemed vastly superior to the vintage figure.  Though, in reality, they were very similar.  But, I was satisfied to have the character in an ugraded form.  A few years later, though, Hasbro released another updated IG-88.  This one was an upgrade.  Though, the figure still wasn't perfect.  In 2007, though, more than a decade since my original hunt for an IG-88, Hasbro released a "definitive" version of the character on a vintage styled cardback.  This new release was tall, lanky, well detailed and very much a figure that made the prior renditions of the character obsolete.

At long last, I had the definitive IG-88 I had always wanted.  And, I quickly kind of forgot about him.  In the next couple of years, I managed to find updated versions of all 6 bounty hunters: which was kind of a thing for me.  But, the figure faded into the background as I lost a bit of interest in all action figures in the early 2010's.  I put my Star Wars figures away when I moved in early 2013 and didn't pull them out again until my kids were finally old enough to start playing with them.  When I did this, though, I did put this IG-88 aside.  He was fragile, which worried me.  But, also, he was a figure I wanted to keep nice.  So, he joined the animated Boba Fett, Admiral Raddus, Indiana Jones, Kit Fisto and a few other select figures in a special case that the boys were supposed to play with.

Sadly, my copy of this version of IG-88 still got broken.  I found him hidden in a pile of figures in my office: right arm snapped off.  After a quick interrogation of the kids, the middle boy came clean that he had broken it one night.  It's somewhat funny, though.  Back in the 1980's, my brother broke the right arm of his IG-88 figure.  I used that one armed figure for years, though.  (Being a droid allowed this to happen.)  So, my now broken figure is a weird mnemonic device that recalls my childhood memories of IG-88.  And, frankly, I'm glad the figure got a bit of playtime before falling apart.

Like all Star Wars figures of his era, this IG-88 isn't worth much.  He was cheap and available at the time and hasn't really caught fire like many other figures that were released in lower numbers in subsequent years.  IG-11's appearance in the Mandalorian helped bring this model of droid to the forefront of the minds of a new generation of fans.  And, my boys got me an IG-11 shirt for Christmas.  So, the figure has value to me for that reason.  Plus, this IG-88 also shows what Hasbro can do.  My kids love the detail and articulation on the figure.  But, the figure isn't designed to withstand rough play.  The 5 POA figures hold up much better.  But, my kids are now of an age where they are asking for articulation.  There just isn't much at retail for them to acquire.

2020 Bespin Luke Skywalker - Retro Collection

In 2019, Hasbro shocked the Star Wars community with the announcement of 6 Kenner styled figure releases.  These figures looked like the vintage Kenner designs and had matching cardbacks.  They were a Target exclusive for retail sales that were marketed around Father's Day.  But, were also available to online dealers later in the year.  Initially, collectors were skeptical about them.  All of the tired arguments about having them "devaluing" vintage figures were thrown around.  But, when they were actually released, the retail stores sold out of them quickly and collectors generally loved them.  (Sure, there were gripes about the Retro sticker and the "weathering" of the cardbacks.)  Hasbro decided to follow up that success with 6 additional "Empire Strikes Back" themed figures for 2020.  This time, they are a Wal Mart exclusive.  With a bit of luck, I found the end cap containing the figures.  And, for the first time in 40 years, I acquired a Bespin Luke Skywalker figure.

I've told stories of my grandparents and their spoiling me before.  Of course, my memories of this figure also begin with them in the summer of 1980.  I spent a week or two at their home that year.  And, like always, my grandmother spoiled me rotten with daily trips to the various retail stores in Dayton, Ohio.  During these trips, I found many figures.  Lando stands out to me as I remember opening him beside the bed in my grandparent's room.  I found the Snow Trooper at a Best Store, too.  I'm not sure, though, when I found the Bespin Luke Skywalker.  It may have been with my grandparents.  Or, it may not have been.  My first remaining memory of the figure, though, pertains to another piece of my youth, the next door neighbors who lived by us at the time.

Growing up, our next door neighbors and my family were close.  They had two girls who were both older than I was.  One was three or four years my senior while the other was about 18 months older.  Growing up, we were inseparable.  Each morning, we'd meet up outside and play in one of our yards.  By the time G.I. Joe came out, though, the age difference was starting to show and I have no association of Joe to them other than the day they were playing their new "Purple Rain" album in the front yard when I was stuck inside, sick, with my new Zartan figure.  But, I have two, specific, memories of them with Star Wars figures, and the Luke Bespin figure is involved in both.

The first was in the summer of 1980, when I first owned this figure.  As he was my favorite, I tended to take him everywhere.  I was playing outside with him when the girls came out to ride bikes.  I decided to ride one of their bikes down the sidewalk.  The bike had a basket on the front.  So, I put my complete Luke into it, thinking it safe while I rode.  But, somehow, Luke's saber managed to slide under one of the weaves in the basket.  When I stopped riding, it was gone!  We all walked up and down the sidewalk until we found it.  Relieved that it was once again in my possession, I checked the basket to see how it managed to fit under one of the tight weaves.  There were just a few places where it did.  So, it was an incredible stroke of bad luck for the saber to fall out.  Fortunately, being rather young, I was only allowed to ride my bike a short distance.  So, there wasn't too much sidewalk to search to find the missing weapon.

The second memory occurred at least one year later.  By then, my Luke's lightsaber was long lost.  But, one afternoon, the girls came back from an outing with their parents.  They had each purchased one new Star Wars figure.  This was odd as they had never bought a figure before.  But, they had each chosen one for a present.  One of the figures was the Luke Bespin.  We went out to the sandbox in their backyard and built a huge tunnel system to use with the figures.  I was insanely jealous of their lightsaber as it was my most wanted accessory.  Within a couple of days, though, their interest in the figures faded away.  I asked if I could have their lightsaber.  But, they had lost theirs, too.  They said it might be in the sandbox.  I went out and dug through it a bit, but with no luck.  Over the next few days, I'd hop our back fence and sneak into their yard to dig in the sandbox a bit more.  I never found the saber and the yellow weapon with this 2020 figure is the first lightsaber of that color I've owned in almost 40 years.

I skipped over the first wave of Retro figures.  I thought they were neat.  But, none of the original figures really sparked that nostalgic flow.  While I had all of them growing up, I didn't feel the need to track the figures down.  I figured I might buy them if I saw them.  But, I never saw them.  With this second wave, though, more nostalgia did hit.  Originally, I wanted Boba Fett because...well...Boba Fett and Lando as I associated him with my grandmother.  Seeing this Bespin Luke, though, brought back the memories of my old neighbors.  We were inseparable for years.  But, as we got older, the age difference began to drift us apart.  Before that really asserted itself, though, they moved away in the summer of 1985.  Their parents would show up at our house from time to time when they were in town on business.  But, I only saw my friends once more in the summer of 1989.  There's a picture of that meeting somewhere in my mother's house.  The story doesn't have a happy ending as both girls ultimately found drugs, poverty, homelessness and even prison.  But, the memories of playing as kids is something I haven't often revisited.  This figure has brought back a rush of childhood events that I hadn't had occasion to remember in quite a while.

One of the reasons I wanted to talk about these Star Wars Retro Collection figures was because we've all seen the Wal Mart listings for a "Retro" series of G.I. Joe figures coming later this year.  We don't know if they will be full on reproductions of vintage Joes.  Or, if they'll be anniversary style figures in retro like packaging.  Either way, a large segment of the Joe world will be disappointed.  We know the price point on those is $13...which is more in line with a more modern figure style in vintage packaging like the Star Wars Vintage Collection.  However, vintage Joes would require 18 individual pieces as well as metal rivets and an o-ring to produce a figure.  The labor to construct it would be higher than a 5 points of articulation vintage Star Wars figure.  So, the price point really doesn't give us any clues.  At some level, I'm hopeful for vintage Joes.  But, Hasbro slammed the door shut pretty hard on classic Joe figures in the early 2010's.  Sure, things change.  But, I'd also like the figures to be anniversary style so I don't have to bother with them.  Regardless of which figure style they are, though, I hope that things like the Retro sticker and faux shelf wear are avoided since they are detrimental to the overall visual experience of the product.

As a kid, vintage Star Wars figures were amazing.  Kenner improved their sculpting as the years went on.  And, at the time of his release, this Luke Bespin was about the most amazing action figure you could get.  Gone were the crappy telescoping lightsabers.  This Luke had a saber that could be shared with others and it did not render his right hand unable to hold a blaster.  But, looking back at this figure now, it's a pretty sorry toy.  Star Wars figures were fun because we had nothing better.  G.I. Joe came along and it was better.  In 1983, it was a LOT better.  And, with the advent of Joe, I had no need for Star Wars toys.  One of the great legacies of the Joe line is the trove of knockoffs it inspired.  But, the overall quality of the G.I. Joe line in terms of construction, posability, accessories and vehicles simply overwhelmed all comers...Star Wars included.  One of the reasons that I've never really gone back to the vintage Star Wars line is because they were rendered obsolete by G.I. Joe.  What nostalgia I had for them was appeased in the 1995 and later Star Wars line that offered far better sculpting and, ultimately, super articulation.  This Bespin Luke is antiquated at best.  Seeing him now, I associate this figure with the crappy toys from the 1950's that my Dad would show me from time to time.  I couldn't understand how kids found those appealing.  Action figures have moved so far ahead of original figures that they are now that dated.  I guess that's good.  But, it was a stark revelation to me when I brought this guy home.

These Retro figures will be an interesting collectible as time goes on.  If Hasbro were to continue releasing 6 figures per year, they could milk a decade and a half just remaking the classic Kenner line.  But, I doubt that will happen.  At some point, the line will suffer from a lack of major characters and the vintage nostalgia train will run out.  We don't really know how many of these were made.  Wal Mart's initial stocking was a pre-packaged end cap with 4 to 6 sets of figures included.  There are over 5,000 Wal Mart stores in the US.  So, that's 20,000 - 30,000 of each figure just assuming every Wal Mart gets one end cap.  (They won't, though.)  Target never restocked their 2019 offerings after Father's Day of that year.  But, online vendors did get stock and additional figures showed up in Europe in 2020.  Wal Mart's online orders haven't shipped yet, either.  So, it's likely we'll see these again in some form...whether additional Wal Mart stockings on standard retail shelves, online or as part of some other release in the future.

In the pandemic where few people are shopping, my local Wal Mart sold out of these in less than 2 days.  (And, it's a Wal Mart where collectibles often hang around for a while.)  So, there's huge demand for these figures. For me, key releases will be must buys...provided I don't have to jump through hoops to get them.  I'd love a Luke Jedi or even an Amanaman.  But, I'm past my days of having great in interest in vintage Star Wars figures.  Figures like this Luke Bespin that have associated memories are great.  (I'd probably have tracked down an Obi Wan Kenobi had it been part of Wave 1 for this reason.)  But, vintage Star Wars figures are still easy to find.  Even carded figures collect dust at every collectible shop in town.  But, few mint and complete figures can be had with a cardback for $10.  So, the Retro figures maintain that appeal.  For me, this is a fun product that hearkens back to childhood and the time of the original releases.  So, it's worth it.  Within a few weeks, we'll know more about the retro G.I. Joes and will see if they spark the fire.

Luke Skywalker - Yavin Ceremony (2007)

As a young child growing up in the original Star Wars era, I found the toys of Luke Skywalker problematic.  The only Luke that was available for the first two years of my young playing days was the Tatooine Luke with the sculpted lightsaber on his right arm.  For the instances where Luke needed a sabre, this was perfect.  But, for me, Luke having a blaster made far more sense.  It was not until 1980 and the Empire Strikes Back that I was able to get a Luke who included both a blaster he could hold and a separate lightsaber.  With this figure in hand, Luke and Han embarked on epic adventures.

As I got older, the fact that a lot of time passed between Star Wars and Empire became more obvious to me.  During this undocumented time, Han, Luke and Leia must have had spectacular adventures as they evaded the Empire.  The Luke of this era would not have really been aware of his Jedi powers and would have been closer to the character he would have become had he left Yavin IV with Han rather than blowing up the Death Star.  That era, though, was not really explored if you didn't read EU books (which I did not).  But, it seemed a time that was full of great stories that showed Luke's growth from the kid on the trench run to a full flight commander just a couple of years later.

I watched the Star Wars Holiday Special when it aired on TV.  I remember as my parents knew it was on and we had to hurriedly leave the Glendale Mall in Indianapolis to make it home in time to see the show.  While I have distinct memories of seeing Han and Chewie in person, I don't recall seeing the cartoon.  It could be that we got home too late to see that part and missed it.  Or, I simply forgot about it because of seeing the real characters on the screen.  When I found the cartoon in the late 1990's, it was the first appearance of Boba Fett that initially got my attention.  But, Luke's look was also interesting.  It was obviously based on Luke's appearance at the end of A New Hope and put him on par with Han as a swashbuckling adventurer rather than the Jedi he would later become.

When Star Wars returned to retail in 1995, the Ceremonial Luke was one of my most desired new figures.  When he was finally released in 1997, I had to get him.  And, Hasbro's first attempt at the character was one of their better efforts of that time and the first Star Wars figure to appear on this site back in 2000.  In the POTFII era, that Ceremonial Luke was a highlight and remains one of the few figures I have left from that time.  This new version from a decade later, though, showcases all of the advances that Hasbro made during that interval.  The sculpting is better, the figure is more in scale and the accessories and articulation are simply spectacular.

After I saw Rogue One on its release night, I was stoked about Star Wars.  I started buying figures again.  I scoured online sites and started getting up to speed on many of the items I'd missed over the years when I was focused 100% on Joe.  But, when I was gearing this profile up for publication, I realized that it's been a really long time since I've looked at a Star Wars figure.  It's been about that long since I bought one at retail.  I haven't bought any of the new vintage collection figures because I haven't been able to actually find any of the characters that interest me.  Now, I get lambasted for this by "serious" Star Wars collectors who only order online from places that guarantee condition, etc.  But, my interest in Star Wars is relative to the ease with which I can collect it.  Buying cases online takes the fun out of it.  And, searching to NEVER find anything is equally appalling.  So, I've spent no money on Star Wars for nearly two years.

The truth is, Hasbro couldn't care less.  One collector spending $200 per year is irrelevant to them.  The big thing, though, is that I have three boys who are of the age when action figures should be drawing them into a property.  They have no interest in Star Wars toys, either.  Losing a generation should concern both Hasbro and Disney.  Though, if Hasbro gives up the Star Wars license (I'll believe it when I see it, though.), they have no reason to care about the future.  The point for me, though, is that the joy of collecting is gone from Star Wars.  It's an adult oriented, go through the motions hobby with a few joyous clearance finds.  That's a far cry from my burgeoning adult collector days in the late 1990's when Star Wars ruled retail. 

So, in looking back at this figure, I recall a more fun time of Star Wars collecting.  The prequels were over and collectors were settling into an era of no new media, but overwhelming retail support for the Star Wars property.  Every month, it seemed, new waves of figures were being released.  And due to the strong sales, it wasn't really hard to find anything.  It was fun because collecting wasn't hard.  You could get the toys you wanted in the quantities you wanted.  But, all things must end.  And, I find myself, once again, at the end of the line for my Star Wars enthusiasm.  It's possible my oldest boy will take up the mantle.  But, his interest in Star Wars is less toy driven.  So, he may love the property, but never actually play with any action figures.  Again, it's something very different from what I'm used to.  But, that's OK and I'm at a point where if Star Wars figure collecting becomes a relic of my past, I'm OK with that, too.

Like many of Luke's 30th Anniversary brethren, this figure is now worthless.  You can still get carded figures for about what you'd have paid at retail in 2007.  In lots or with patience, you can get them for even less.  To the best of my knowledge, Luke in this outfit has never been released on a vintage cardback.  (Though, one is coming soon if it's not out already.)  I'd actually buy that.  But, this figure is good enough for me.  It's not perfect.  But, few Star Wars figures actually are and Hasbro continues to improve certain characters and figures in increments that leaves you with you many close but not quite perfect releases of the same character.

Solo

I just got back from Solo.  The theatre was small and mostly empty.  But, considering I spent $25 for a ticket, popcorn and a soda, I can get why.  It was nothing like the Rogue One premiere where the theatre was packed and there was a full line to get in.  I suppose one divisive movie between them will do that.  But, I left the movie very happy.  It felt like a big, warm hug to Star Wars fans.  It was comforting, familiar and didn't take any risks.  I've seen a lot of concern about Alden Ehrenreich and whether he could pull off Han Solo.  I think he did and he did it well.  I had no issues believing he was Han at all.  So, with the general out of the way, we'll go to specifics.  If you don't want spoilers, don't read any further.

Spoilers Follow!

Rogue One Death Trooper Black Series - Around the Web

Rogue One remains one of my favorite Star Wars films.  It has held up to repeat viewings, so far, in ways that the Prequels have not.  The characters from the film were solid designs and are the only Disney era characters I collect.  The 3 3/4 Black Series Death Trooper is one of the best Star Wars figures I've ever come across.  It's screen accurate enough.  It has a ton of gear.  There's ample articulation.  And, the joints move with a fluidity I've never before seen on super articulated Star Wars figures.  In short, it's probably my favorite Star Wars figure of the past decade.  And, it's going to be returning to retail in the resurgence of the Vintage Collection in 2018.  This guy got some press upon his release.  But, the 6" figure took most of the thunder.  Here's the best I can find on this guy from around the web.

Death Trooper Profile

Death Trooper at JediTempleArchives

Death Trooper Video

Death Trooper at Figureoftheday

Death Trooper at JediBusiness

Death Trooper at Come See Toys

Rogue One Shoretrooper - The Black Series

Since 1995, I have collected Star Wars figures in an on again, off again fashion.  Through that time, though, I've usually kept one eye on the collecting world, even if I wasn't actively buying the figures.  One theme that's run through the years is that if Hasbro makes something, they usually make a lot of it.  Hasbro isn't in business to spend their resources on small production runs.  So, even if circumstances dictate that a particular release gets backed up at retail or can't get out in significant numbers, Hasbro has, likely, produced the full production run of that item.  The result is that, in time, the items will filter out.  Though, they may be through deeply discounted clearance sales, online only offerings or, the more common route in recent years, through the overstock and discount retail store pipeline.  The result is that, if you have the patience, just about everything Star Wars will show up at retail somewhere.

There were two new flavors of Stormtrooper introduced in Rogue One: this Shoretrooper and the Death Trooper.  Everything I've known about toys for the past 20 years pointed me in the direction that the Death Trooper would be the overwhelming collector favorite.  There had not been a ton of black Stormtrooper figures through the years.  The Death Trooper had the cooler name and higher profile in the movie.  And, typically, environmentally themed figures are less popular than those that can be used in multiple settings.  But, I turned out to be spectacularly wrong.  The Shoretrooper took on the greater collecting life and every instance of the Shoretrooper that saw mass retail release was more popular than the Death Troopers.  I asked some fans why they felt this was the case.  And, the answer generally seemed to be that Star Wars hadn't seen any desert themed figures before.  (The oddly popular Sandtroopers were just Stormtroopers with more gear.)  So, they were "new" to the world while the Death Troopers were something fans had seen before.  (Hell, even I had an all black Stormtrooper from circa 2008.)  So, the Shoretroopers resonated more and found more popularity.  How this will play 10 years from now, though, is anyone's guess.

In 2016, Rogue One rekindled my interest in Star Wars.  Despite the figures mostly being 5 points of articulation, I found many of them good enough.  So, I started buying a few: mostly the characters I really liked.  The late spring of 2017 brought about a great many clearance sales on Star Wars figures.  During that time, I was able to get many of the more highly priced 3.75 Black Series figures since they were at a price I found more palatable.  But, I also picked up a few more of the 5 points of articulation figures that were 1/2 price.  Among these were both a Deathtrooper and a Shoretrooper.  After owning the Black Series Deathtrooper, the 5 POA figure was pretty dismal.  But, since I didn't have another Shoretrooper option, the 5 POA didn't bother me as much with that release.  I found the design more interesting than I originally thought I would.  This, of course, lead to great frustration as I knew that Hasbro had produced a 3.75 Shoretrooper in super articulated form.  I simply couldn't find one.  I found remnants of his case several times: but the army builders were all cleared out by other collectors.  So, I resigned myself to simply never getting this figure.

The initial shipments of the Shoretrooper wave sold out quickly.  While serious collectors were able to find them and buy them up, the more casual fan (a group I consider myself in these days) would only find them with incredible luck.  As the calendar turned to 2017, the shipments of the figures seemed to dry up and boxed Shoretroopers became $30 figures on the secondary market.  In the spring, though, Wal Mart reduced the price of Black Series figures to almost 60% off the previous retail.  This caused some serious sell down of stock as the Black Series figures were now lower priced than the basic carded figures.  (Though, to be fair, at my 2 local Wal Marts, they had only a smattering of Jyn Erso and Princess Leia figures available.)  It also, though, pushed most of the remaining stock through the distribution chain.  Collectors reported finding cases and cases of the Shoretrooper wave for the discounted prices.  While my nearest Wal Mart never got any more stock, I missed the Shoretroopers by one day at the second that's closer to work.  I searched in vain, but never found the missing figure.  Despite the mass quantities of Shoretroopers showing up around the country for under $6 each, the aftermarket pricing didn't soften all that much.  So, I gave up owning this figure and moved on.

In November of 2017, though, I saw scattered reports that people were still finding the occasional new case of Shoretroopers at various Wal Marts.  I didn't think much of it, though, as I didn't really have the desire to look very hard and my local Wal Mart hasn't had any new Black Series figures since December of 2016.  The Sunday before Thanksgiving of 2017, though, I ran out to pick up a few gifts for the boys that were in stock at the store near my office.  It was later in the evening.  I had a feeling that I might find a Shoretrooper because the circumstances of my being at the store were odd.  Sure enough, when I went to the toy aisle, there was a lone Shoretrooper hanging from the peg.  After nearly a year of searching, I had the last piece of my Rogue One collection and I had found it at retail.

As for the figure, it's fairly solid.  I hold the 3.75 Black Series Death Trooper in extremely high regard.  I consider it one of the finest Star Wars figures ever made.  This Shoretrooper is close, but not quite that quality.  While he has all the joints you need, he is a bit stiffer in some places and more wobbly in others.  He's better than many of the super articulated figures I acquired in 2008 and 2009.  But, he's not quite Death Trooper level.  His gear was also somewhat of a disappointment.  He just includes the one blaster.  The 5 POA Shoretrooper figures include the new blaster that was introduced in Rogue One.  It would have made sense to include one of those weapons with this figure, too.  But, at least some of the 5 POA figures are clearance fodder and you can buy them up for an extra gun.

Overall, I'm somewhat torn on the character.  To me, any Stormtrooper not in the standard white armor seems like a relic from the Clone Wars era.  I hold many of the Prequel Clones in high regard.  But, they are not really iconic to me.  I see this Shoretrooper similarly.  He's neat.  But, he's never going to be the backbone of an Imperial army.  So, I have one with little desire to acquire any more.  It doesn't mean he's a bad figure or a weak design.  I just grew up with the standard Stormtroopers and see deviations from their base white and black color scheme as one off type figures.

I don't know how to play out a long term prognostication for this figure.  Currently, the figure is still over $20 on the aftermarket.  Rogue One is fading from memory and its doubtful that the Rogue One timeline will be revisited by Disney again at any point in the near future.  So, it's likely that the Shoretrooper's moment in the limelight has passed.  But, collectors are a loyal bunch and many original trilogy fans hold Rogue One in high regard: keeping the characters from the story more popular than they might otherwise be.  Most collectors assumed the Shoretrooper would be among the first figures re-released on Vintage packaging in 2018.  But, it seems the Death Trooper will get that honor.  And, with the generally lame lineup of the next vintage waves coupled with Disney's movie release schedule, it looks like the Shoretrooper could have a tough time finding a release slot.  And, even if he is re-released, it's an easy figure to recolor into one of the ranked troopers: leaving this release as a distinct figure variant.  Or, he'll get dumped into a clearance wave and pegwarm for a year at discount stores.  With the modern Star Wars line, you never know.

Around the same time that I found this Shoretrooper, I also acquired the 3.75 Black Series Sandtrooper figure.  I've vacillated on the Sandtrooper over the years.  In the '90's, he was a must have new figure.  But, by the late 2000's, the character was overexposed.  And, he continues to be so.  (Supposedly, the Sandtrooper is a personal favorite of a high ranking Hasbro executive which is why we see the Sandtrooper more frequently than the standard Stormtrooper.)  But, when you can buy a super articulated Star Wars army builder for 1/3 of retail, you do so.  The proximity of the acquisitions lead to both the Sandtrooper and Shoretrooper lying next to each on the floor.  It was then that I realized that the two figures were, basically, the same color.  The Sandtrooper's dirty overspray made him nearly an identical tan color to the Shoretrooper.  (You can see them in photos below.)  Oddly, this made me more fond of the Shoretrooper figure.

As an aside, I had planned this profile for a December 15th, 2017 posting date.  The expectation was that I'd see "The Last Jedi" the night before and have this up as a celebration the following day.  I have fond memories of seeing Rogue One at the same time in 2016.  But, I then read "The Last Jedi" spoilers.  With those, any interest I had in seeing the film died.  And, with it, most of my interest in Star Wars as a concept was sapped, too.  I won't speak to the merits of the film as I haven't seen it.  But, there is one plot point that I simply had no need to see.  I get it that characters get old and that we need new characters, younger characters, to replace them.  But, when the only way to make a new character valid is by killing off the old character, the new character probably isn't all that worthwhile.

My childhood was defined by the heroes I saw in Star Wars.  I have enough reminders that I'm getting older.  Seeing those childhood giants needlessly die for some obtuse "closure" doesn't work for me.  But, knowing that the characters with whom I spent copious amounts of time in my formative years are now gone from the story I love leaves me little interest in following the story any more.  Star Wars is now for younger generations.  Maybe my kids will like it as more than a novelty.  But, even with the property's marketing saturation, I only have one child who has any interest in the franchise: and it's rather fleeting.  We'll see where I'm at in a few months.  But, with Hasbro's inability to create products that excite collectors and knowing the films are no longer for me, I'm not overly optimistic that my Rogue One collecting Renaissance will ever be repeated.